Plans for the design, construction and demonstration of the world's first optically driven transmission electron microscope phase plate are described. This technology, known as a Ponderomotive Phase Plate, utilizes a focused laser to create a well defined phase shift of electrons passing through the back focal plane of the objective lens. This phase shift modulates the contrast transfer function of the instrument enabling high contrast images to be recorded at optimal focus while eliminating contrast reversals at lower spatial frequencies. This approach addresses and solves a multitude of issues associated with previous phase plate designs and is the only method proposed thus far that has the potential to deliver on the incredible biological imaging advantages that can be gained with a phase plate with none of the significant problems associated with Zernike and Boertsch phase plates. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: IDES will provide an invaluable imaging tool for medical, pharmaceutical, and nano- technology researchers. The Pondermotive Phase Plate will enable the advancement of public health in areas as diverse as virology, drug discovery, drug delivery, cellular dynamics, and cell biology.